Academia – Teaching

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

David Feng, BEc, MA, DA (PhD), is a media academic and a TEFL-accredited teacher of English. For many years, I’ve been teaching and improving English across China, and since 2012, have also been teaching students media and world culture.

I was educated in both the West and in China. My teenage years were spent in international schools in Switzerland, where all classes had students from all over the world. Multilingual, multicultural Switzerland gave me a head start to my “collection” of 10 languages at present, and continued with ten years in Chinese Key Universities, where I got to understand the culture better, as well as pick up more knowledge in economics, and in particular in media.

My present career — Associate Professor — is a good way for me to teach, inform and educate the people of tomorrow, and to tell the youngsters of tomorrow how life works best by guiding them onto things and thoughts that work. I will be continuing this with further research and academic lecturing in other places around the world.

In 2007, I completed a TEFL accreditation course and now hold the relevant teaching certification.

LIST OF LESSONS(All are given by subject taught.)

The following is a list of all lessons I’ve taught or are still teaching. They are split into active lessons, prepared lessons, and past lessons. An active lesson is one which is actively taught; a prepared lesson refers to one last taught 6 months ago; and a past lesson refers to one last taught 2 or more years ago.

“Recent lessons” include those previously taught at the Communication University of China and Hebei University. Lessons for Chinese railways are explained in further detail on a separate page.

MAIN RECENT LESSONS

▶ China’s Media and the Emerging World Order

The Anglophone media have hitherto been seen and touted as models of universal applicability. However, in this evolving and changing world order, the Chinese media, in a system distinct from that of the Anglosphere, are seen as a visible factor that appears as distinctly visible outside the Anglophone media system. These sessions examined the Chinese media system and their evolving place in the world today. These lessons were co-lead with Prof de Burgh of the China Media Centre.

▶ Study Skills

Study Skills is a module I led which aimed to improve students’ studying abilities. Assistance is offered to all students. Lessons are divided between 40-60 minutes of guidance / briefing lectures and interactive debate and hands-on exercises. This module was being taught at the University of Westminster.

OTHER RECENT LESSONS

▶ Media in China

These lessons were given to incoming students from abroad in English and French, and focused on a general look at the media in China. No topic was left untouched in one of the most wide-ranging coverage available on the subject. Students also submitted their questions in for quick info sessions, and role-play was employed to make students understand the Chinese media situation better.

▶ Media Theory / Mass Communications

In these lessons, basic theories about mass media, including those from Habermas and McLuhan, just to name a few, were taught. Students were given a medium-to-medium look at mass media today. Completely delivered by David Feng, these lessons introduced fresh new insights into contemporary media. Students were in particular clearly informed about the importance of media literacy and the legal use of media.

▶ English Language and Culture / Academic English

This was taught to all students at the Communication University of China. It contained information about English in a worldwide setting, basic academic English exercises, and the use of English in different fields and countries. Also included were a history of the English-speaking world. There was a separate edition available for academic professionals which were more focused on current events. The first generation of these handouts were given in paper format, so that students may take these onboard airplanes as reading matter when leaving China for an international destination.

▶ World Culture

In these lessons, which took part both inside and outside the classroom, students were given a unique insight into world cultures, and to find differences between the cultures of the West and the East. In some lessons, students were introduced to “slang”, so as to reduce problems when talking with locals in foreign countries. Differences between individual countries were also introduced, so to lessen “cultural shocks”.

PREPARED LESSONS

▶ Cross-Cultural CommunicationLast delivered June 2013

These lessons had both a unified part, given to most students, and a country-by-country part, which was either optional or a separate module. The country-specific part included specific studies of cultures in East Africa and Australia. These lessons were mainly given to students of the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Science.

▶ CommunicationLast delivered June 2013

This was taught to students at the Renmin University of China and centred on communication in English.

PAST LESSONS

▶ Trade EnglishLast delivered early 2003

These lessons mainly involved conversations between people involved in international trade.

PRO BONO LESSONS

▶ Tuanjiehu English Society, Beijing

I’ve been a pretty frequent speaker for local residents in Tuanjiehu, one of the parts of Beijing more active in learning English. Most lessons took place in spring and early summer 2013, but I also returned in late May 2014 to introduce and promote an English-language book for Beijingers that I co-authored in early 2014.

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE(These are given by year, not by subject taught.)

September 2012 – (main involvement): Communications University of China — Lecturer of English culture and of Media. My courses are English, language culture, and media. These included special lessons for faculty (English improvement lessons) since October 2012.

June 2012 –: Chinese School of Social Sciences — teacher of English culture. I’ve been teaching mainly people working in Chinese State-owned enterprises and even government officials about English and culture outside of China.

2003 – 2004: University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, China. I was the teaching assistant and even hosted a few lessons on English for international students. This was part of my BEc studies and was teaching assistance.

October 2000 – January 2001 and again September 2001 – January 2002: Beijing International Trade Vocational School, Beijing, China. For two semesters, my duty was to teach vocational high school students how to use English the right way to settle international trade agreements. This was part of my BEc studies and was assigned to my by a course teacher.

▶ Other minor involvements

October 2011 – November 2011: Heilongjiang Chengguang School and Harbin Normal University, Heilongjiang, China. I taught English and how to correct the Chinglish phenomenon, and got kids interested in two lectures about why writing “wronglish” is problematic.

August 2007: Inter-Community School Zürich, Zumikon, Switzerland and The Riverside School, Zug, Switzerland. I spoke to classes in both schools about media in China as well as contemporary Chinese history.

March 2002 – May 2002: University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, China. As assisted work as part of my BEc studies, I was in charge of lessons to “continued education” learners — those who are no longer enrolled in universities.

January 2002: Inter-Community School Zürich, Zumikon, Switzerland. I gave ICS a quick introduction to the Chinese language.

Winter 2000 – 2001: Fangcaodi Experimental School, Beijing, China. Took over a few lessons for primary school students.

At other times, I was also a private tutor in English and English culture for students from primary school through to adults. I’ve also trained students in Shenzhen on behalf of a Hong Kong-based TV station in December 2006 (English and international language culture).